Why I love shooting film: The challenge
There’s something very rewarding about being able to operate an all-manual film camera and produce useable images with it. You have to get the exposure right, the timing, the focus, the framing; you often need a steady hand in low light; and developing the film needs to be done correctly, too.
I do use a light meter app on my phone to help me with setting the exposure, though, but that’s about it for additional technical help. A meter simply makes me more confident in dialling in my exposure. But – to be honest – more often than not, I guess (or even know) the exposure.
And I could shoot more automatic film cameras to help me out. But I prefer those manual mechanical ones. This might be making it unnecessarily hard for myself, but that’s exactly the challenge I like so much. But just because I’m using these manual tools, doesn’t mean I’m automatically taking better pictures, of course.
And to end this not on a more modest note: once you start shooting film and use manual cameras – while at first indeed challenging – you’ll notice it’s actually not that hard. I got used to this way of shooting and now prefer it over using all sorts of automatics. It makes for a more controlled, quicker, and more enjoyable experience for me. And it’s a more calm way of shooting, without many buttons to push or looking at flashing lights or screens.
But still: it’s a nice feeling having captured an image where I was 100% responsible for all the technical settings and processes.
